the scene. we'll bring you the latest as soon as it happens. reporting live in college pack, megan mcgrath, news 4. eun, aaron back to you. we'll switch gears. shaping up to be a pretty nice day around d.c. but we're already tracking a new potential problem. >> a newline of winter weather is head hadded our way. storm team 4 meteorologist tom kierein is here with more on what you should expect. good morning. >> as we get into wednesday afternoon, we could have some snow and rain around much of the region. but right now, the sky has cleared out overnight and we're -- didn't get too cold. it's still rather chilly. just a few clouds passing through the region now. overall, it's mostly clear. and temperatures are down to the low 40s. much of the region. low to mid-40s in the beltway and closer to washington. right now, montgomery, fairfax, prince george's county in the upper 40s. it's in the upper 40s in the district of klum yachlt i can't. farther to the west, culpeper at

50 degrees. while the shenandoah valley, panhandle of west virginia, most of those locations are in the low to mid-40s this morning. here's how we look the rest of the day. temperatures this morning holding steady in the 40s through nn time. by then in the upper 40s. we have a blustery wind gusting around 25 miles per hour. the winds will be gusting up to 20 to 25 miles per hour into the early part of the afternoon. hometown forecast in la plata, 4 charles county. in much of southern maryland reaching the low 50s there with lots of sunshine. i'm ba being in ten minutes with another update. first 4 traffic with danella, good morning. >> good morning. the first 4 traffic office, still checking early morning construction. we'll start southbound, pennsylvania avenue, just at the beltway, going to see the left lane blocked by roadwork there. now over to 50 in marylandout bound. 50 past the beltway, your right lane blocked by roadwork.

other than that, from the bay bridge to the beltway, travel lanes are open. a live look at the beltway at 50. no issues to report. continuing towards the wilson bridge. travel lanes are open in both directions. as you commute around the beltway further into virginia, here's a look at george counsel pike. no issues to report. over to you. 4:32 to you. angie goff has breaking news out of north korea. >> north korea confirms it successfully conducted a nuclear test and world leaders are reacting. it carried out the test of the nuclear bomb. after it was detected by the u.s. geological survey. in a statement, president obama described the test as a highly provocative act. he adds, north korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs constitute a threat to international security and that the north threatening activities warrants further swift and credible action bit international community. meanwhile, u.n. secretary general ban ki-moon condemns the

test as a grave violation and called for an emergency meeting today. this is north korea's third nuclear test. the first in 2006 that happened near the site of the two previous atomic blasts. this morning, china has come out and expressed firm opposition to this nuclear test. at the live desk, angie goff, news 4. angie, thank you. as a result of that, president obama will likely do a bit of rewriting today as he prepares for one of the more important speeches of his presidency. he'll deliver his fourth state of the union address tonight. the president will lay out his second term agenda. he'll likely focus on the economy and the billions of dollars of budget cuts set to happen on march 1st. president obama urged congress to pass a short term agreement to avoid the potentially devastating cuts. we will also hear from prominent republicans tonight after the president speaks. marco rubio will deliver the republican response. he's one of the gop's rising stars and is considered a potential presidential candidate in 2016.

the tae party also will have a voice heard tonight. kentucky senator rand paul will give his response. this is the third time the tae party is offering a formal response to the president's speech. we're starting to learn who some of the invited guests are for the address. it appears some of them reflect the bitter debate over gun control. texas congressman steve stock man invited rocker and gun rights advocate ted nugent to the steve. the white house invited hadiya pend approximate will ton's parents. she was killed days after traveling to it washington for president obama's inauguration. staff sergeant clinton row meesha will also be there tonight. you may want to avoid driving near the capitol tonight because of the state of the union. capitol police are closing several streets including constitution avenue between second street northeast and louisiana avenue northwest. pennsylvania avenue between

first and third streets northwest and east capitol street between second and first streets. independence avenue will also be closed between second street southeast and washington avenue southwest. you can watch the president's speech tonight right here on nbc4. our coverage begins at 8:45 and reaction afterward on news 4:00 at 11:00. today a senate judiciary subcommittee will look for ways to reduce gun violence. ha committee will examine the legality and -- two harvard professors from the law school will testify today. the family of hadiya pendleton will also be at that hearing before heading to the state of the union. outgoing defense secretary leon panetta will say his final goodbyes to his colleagues at the pentagon. that happens later this morning. he's served since july of 2011. his possible replacement. former nebraska senator chuck hagel could be one step closer to being confirmed. the committee plans to put the nomination up for a vote. now to the ongoing search for the ex-officer wanted for

murder. new documents reveal christopher dorner might have fled to mexico. as police continue their manhunt across southern california, authorities are searching more than 30 square miles across the big bear area, which includes a popular ski resort. dorner's burned-out truck was found in the area with weapons and camping gear inside. dorner was fired a few years ago from the lapd and it's believed his attacks are part of a revenge plot. >> to be targeted because you took an oath to protect others, to have your family targeted because they're related to you, that is absolutely terrifying. >> authorities have increased security along the u.s./mexico border and warn airport security to be on the lookout for dorner. two men are if jail this morning accused of killing a 15-year-old who recently performed during inauguration festivities here in washington. chicago police say hadiya pendleton was not the intended

victim in the shooting last month. an 18-year-old and 20-year-old are now facing murder charges for her killing at a park not far from president barack obama's chicago home. police say the men mistook hadiya and her friends for rival gang members. her parents are expected to sit with the first lady at tonight's state of the union. d.c.'s alcoholic beverage control board will not give roadside cafe its liquor license back. the company worked with d.c. sound stage where a shooting sent five people to the hospital. the post said the board determined the club was using the catering company's liquor license to act like a bar but not follow certain rules. we continue to track breaking news near the university of maryland campus. you're looking live at the scene where police are investigating an overnight shooting that left at least one person dead. also ahead, what we're learning about the conditions aboard a carnival cruise ship stranded in the gulf of mexico and when it will reach its final

destination. >> enjoy the nice weather while you can.

almost tastes like one of jack's cereals. fiber one. uh, forgot jack's cereal. [ jack ] what's for breakfast? um... try the number one! yeah, this is pretty good. [ male announcer ] over a third of a day's fiber. fiber one. ♪ shimmy, shimmy chocolate. ♪ shimmy, shimmy chocolate. ♪ we, we chocolate cross over. ♪ yeah, we chocolate cross over. ♪ [ male announcer ] introducing fiber one

80 calorie chocolate cereal. ♪ chocolate. ♪ this won't surprise anybody. but the mrs. carter show in the district sold out in less than one minute. don't worry, though. if you are a beyonce fan, the pop diva added a second concert to the verizon center. also not surprising, it will be

tuesday, july 30th. tickets go on sale on friday. one of our producers bought tickets online yesterday. >> add got them? >> at 10:00, hit go, sold outside. seconds. >> that's all it takes. now you have to find another way. just be careful. >> me? >> i'll wait for the video. >> time for weather and traffic on the 1s. meteorologist tom kierein. good morning. >> good morning. mostly cleared out. temperatures are a little bit sort of mild but chilly. depending on where you are. fort belvoir down to 36. 49 at reagan national. montgomery, arlington, most of fairfax county in the mid-40s. prince george's as well. hour by hour through the day, lots of sunshine. the low 50s by mid-afternoon. we could get snow later in the week. a look at traffic now with danella. >> good morning. we'll head down i-95 in virginia. pretty clear as far as construction, no accidents.

stafford continuing northbound towards o the beltway, again, no issues to report. a live look at 395. again, clear here as well as you make your way between the beltway and across the 14th street bridge traveling into the district. nice and clear. people in maryland, brace yourself. your gas bill is about to get bigger. we'll show you why. the drink option for those looking for a

lucky charms?! ♪ yer always after me lucky charms! whoa. i forgot how good these taste! [ lucky ] ♪ they're magically delicious ♪ the one and only, cheerios

new vemgdevelopments on the strd cruise ship in the gulf of mexico. tugboats are towing the triumph to mobile, alabama. the ship drifted so far north it decided to tow the ship to alabama instead of mexico. an engine room fire knocked out the propulsion system on sunday. no one was hurt. more than 4,000 passengers are on that ship with limited food

and bathroom access. the ship should arrive in mobile on thursday. police need your help catching a man who sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl. the attack happened saturday morning in an alley near the 3200 block of wheeler road in southeast. that's just blocks from the congress heights metro station. police say she was walking when a man with a gun forced her into the alley. police say the man sexually assaulted her and took off in a dark blue four-door car. if you have any information, call d.c. police. in the day ahead, jury selection resumes in the trial of a man accused of killing a mother and daughter. prosecutors say jason scott killed delores and ebly dewitt more than three years ago. their bodies were found in the trunk of a burning car. he is serving 100 years in prison for burglaries, sex assault and other crimes. ebony dewitt's father is not going to rest until he sees his daughter's killer convicted. >> the 100 years he's given is for him breaking in houses and

doing other stuff. it doesn't have anything to do with him being sentenced for my daughter's murder. >> scott is also a person of interest in three other murders. lawyers expect this trial to last at least a month. this morning, we're getting our hands on an alarming report about turnover at d.c. public schools much the office of the state superintendent of education just released the report this morning. according to this study, more than 6,000 students left traditional and charter schools in the district during last school year. administrators don't know where the students went. they might have moved, transferred to a private school or dropped out. during that same time, more than 4500 students entered d.c. public skooms. we don't know where they came from either. one researcher put it, it looks like admissions are rolling. if you live in maryland, expect to pay a little bit more for natural gas. a price hike to help pay for improvements to older pipelines.

governor martin o'malley has not indicated whether he would sign the bill. a state senate committee today will discuss bob mcdonnell's plan to generate billions of dollars for transportation. the governor traveled to northern virginia yesterday to sell his proposal. dulles toll road commuters, here's how he says his plan will help you. he says $300 million would help fund phase 2 of the metro silver line project. that would offset the expected toll hikes on the toll road. mcdonnell wants to scrap the commonwealth's gas tax altogether and raise its sales tax. he now says he's willing to compromise with democrats. >> the general assembly wanted to come up with a plan that creates a hybrid where we reduce our reliance on the gas tax and maybe increase the sales tax slightly, something like that, we could talk about that. >> the full senate could vote on the transportation funding bill tomorrow. a scary bus ride home for metro commuters last night after

a tree fell and landed right on the bus. the crash happened on 16th street and spring road. it came down on the bus. no one was injured. passengers were escorted off of the bus and caught another bus to continue their trips. what caused the tree to fall down is still unknown. right now, people in new orleans are celebrating mardi gras. if you don't speak french, that's fat tuesday. in case you didn't know. it lasts all day and through the night. bourbon street -- a little rain not stopped the party. restaurants and hotels say they have large crowds. ponchos are selling pretty fast, almost as fast as beads this year. today is robert griffin iii's 23rd birthday. the offensive rookie of the year has a hard off season ahead of him. despite the way the season ended, the age of 22 was not bad for him. he was a seven-time nfl rookie

of the week. two-time offensive player of the week and two-time rookie of the month and he led the redskins to the playoffs. happy birthday. this week is off to a good start for local hoops fans. the wizards won against again last night. they beat milwaukee 102-90. nay nay scored 21 points for washington. it was their fourth straight win. they're 15-35 on o the season. they'll try to make it five in a row tomorrow in detroit. the georgetown hoyas also red hot. they beat the marquette golden eagles. georgetown improved its record to 18-4. the hoyas tied for second place in the big east and just a half game behind syracuse. we've seen a half court shot in basketball b. but not quite like this one. two colorado girls basketball teams went head to head friday. in the final seconds, one of the girls from the red team puts up

an overhead shot from the free-throw line bounces and goes in. how about that? it looks like the shot is no good at first. but you can tell it hit the backboard, dropped in. her team won 30-22. that's pretty awesome. sometimes you just got to lob it and see what happens. >> you never know. >> good for her. coming up on 4:51 on this tuesday morning. tom kierein is keeping an eye on things had. felt pretty good this morning. >> not too cold. bit of a blustery wind. winds are gusting around 20 miles per hour. we had a gorgeous sunset. this sent in from winchester, virginia. steven city, winchester, getting up early in the morning after that sunset. we have a clearing sky since then. post your pics to nbcwashington.com. there's the monument. that's a pretty picture. live view from the city camera. 49 at reagan national with a westerly wind around 14 miles

per hour. we have temperatures elsewhere. mid-40s in montgomery county. prince george's, arlington and most of fairfax, fort belvoir at 36. elsewhere in the 40s. leesburg down to 43. off to a mild start this morning. as we look at -- happening later today, lots of sunshine. this is as of tuesday afternoon 4:30. as we get into the evening hours, initially the early part of the evening clear. clouds closing in rapidly as we get a low pressure close to it. this is a wednesday morning, tomorrow morning at 7:00 a.m. all cloudy, no precipitation for the morning commute. then, as we get into the afternoon, this is 3:00 in the afternoon, the area in green. that's rain. the area you see in the lavender, that's potential snow. we're going to get colder air moving in as this low pressure moves off the atlantic seaboard changing the rain to snow. this is as of 8:00 p.m. on wednesday. and then will quickly exit by midnight. most of it is gone. it's a brief visit. maybe enough to leave a couple of inches and then after that.

we get the sunshine back on thursday. so hour by hour this morning, no travel problems. mostly clear sky. a blustery wind. you'll need the winter coat. by noontime, upper 40s with bright sunshine and four-day forecast. highs low 50s. the winds diminish tonight. the increasing clouds and the rain changing to snow. before we get the snow, it may make into the 40s. then the snowfall will drop it down to the low 30s. during the day on thursday, mid-40s and sunshine. sunshine back on friday. a bit milder. the low 50s. could get snow on saturday. this looks like a weak system. not a powerful one. but still enough to give us light accumulations of snow. looks like saturday afternoon, saturday evening then clearing out for sun and monday. by monday afternoon, highs back into the mid-40s. i'm back in ten minutes. a look at traffic now with danella. first 4 traffic on this tuesday

morning. >> good morning. tom, checking an accident. this is as you make your commute in columbia, maryland. columbia pike 29 northbound at 32. you can see fire department, police all on the scene of a crash here along the right side of the roadway. you are able to get by but single file to the left. if you're traveling this road, not a lot of volume right now. it should be easy to work around. if you're traveling both directions, 29 north and southbound. use caution. lot of folks will slow down because of all the lights in this area. we'll keep watching this accident for you. a live look at clarksburg road. north, southbound continuing to all the way towards rockville. connecting to the beltway. no issues to report. as you travel the inner loop of the beltway between i-270 and 95, no accidents, no construction at this time. >> thank you, danella. transunion is reporting good news from the housing market. the u.s. late mortgage payment rate hit a four-year low. the credit reporting agency says

mortgage holders at least two months behind on their payments fell more than 5%. that's down nearly 14% from the last three months of 2011. they say the improvement comes because low interest rates make it easier for homeowners to refinance and lower their payments. if you have not checked your credit score lately, might want to look into it. as many as 40 million americans have errors on their credit reports. common errors include the spelling of your name, your address, your birthday and in some cases even your payment history. those errors can keep you from getting a loan or qualifying for lower interest rates or even cost you a job. if you find an error on your credit report, you're advised to contact that credit reporting agency to have it resolved immediately. how does mountain dew for breakfast sound? not good. pepsico is going to introduce a caffeinated juice drink. it has more than the mountain

dew soda. for people who don't like coffee or tea, it comes in two flavors, orange citrus and fruit punch and will hit the shelves on february 25th. i'm going to stick to my green tea. for people who ho don't like the taste of coffee or tea and looking for that caffeine. >> they look for stuff like that. some people pop a red bull in the morning. it's a lot. how the region is paying tribute to one of our country's greatest presidents today on his birthday. stealing the spotlight. what a medal of honor son's did that has people talking. we continue to track breaking news. police investigating an overnight shooting that left one person dead. a live rep

[ anouncer ] ihop is in time square to compare new griddle-melts to your usual breakfast sandwich. it doesn't seem like fast food. there's a lot of substance, it just seems really fresh. there's like a lot more flavor. [ anouncer ] ihop is building our best breakfast sandwiches ever. new griddle-melts made fresh and hot. hand crafted just for you. it's like a sexy sandwich. i love this crispy bread... ...the roasted red peppers. it's awesome. [ anouncer ] compare new griddle melts yourself. just $4.99 at ihop. this is an epic breakfast sandwich. [ anouncer ] ihop. everything you love about breakfast. you want that don't you?

if you want to get creative this valentine's day. think outside of the box of chocolates. you oenl have a couple of days left. a survey says nearly half of americans would get ticket to a live show from their sweetheart. 47% of men want tickets to a sporting event. but do i get to go? 62% of women and 53% of men wouldn't mind a gift card. i would mind a gift card. aaron? >> thank you, eun. two events will be held in washington today to commemorate the 204th birthday of abraham lincoln. the first event is a wreath laying at the ford's historic

site. later today, an annual ceremony at the -- harding arranged the first dedication ceremony. the son of clinton romesha showed off his -- >> he explored the presidential podium before trying to take a seat in the chair reserved for his father. the president took notice of the young man dressed in a suit and tie saying colin is not as shy as his dad clint. the president says colin raced around the oval office and sampled a number of apples before he found the one that was just right. you got to love the innocence of kids. he doesn't know his dad is a big deal. medal of honor. >> there is fruit to be had and therefore, makes perfect sense. >> very cute. he's adorable. stay with us. "news4 today" continues right now at 5:00 a.m.